Pakistan finalizes revamped squad for South Africa Test series

The Pakistan Cricket Board has finalized a revamped 16-member squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against South Africa, part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025–27 cycle, beginning on October 12 in Lahore. Earlier, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had announced an 18-member squad for the series, but left-arm spinner Faisal Akram and all-rounder Aamer Jamal have now been left out. With this adjustment, the final squad has been trimmed to 16 players. Shan Masood will continue to lead the Test side as Pakistan begins its World Test Championship 2025–27 campaign.  Pakistan will face South Africa, the reigning ICC World Test Championship 2023–25 champions, in the first Test at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, from October 12 to 16. The second Test will be played at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium from October 20 to 24. The red-ball series will be followed by three T20Is and three ODIs, scheduled from October 28 to November 8 across Rawalpindi, Lahore, and Faisalabad. The squad for the white-ball series will be announced later. Pakistan squad for South Africa Tests: Shan Masood (captain), Abdullah Shafique, Abrar Ahmed, Asif Afridi, Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Kamran Ghulam, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Rizwan (wicket-keeper), Noman Ali, Rohail Nazir (wicket-keeper), Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi. South Africa tour to Pakistan schedule:  12-16 October – First Test at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 20-24 October – Second Test at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi 28 October – First T20I at Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium, Rawalpindi 31 October – Second T20I at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 1 November – Third T20I at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore 4 November – First ODI at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad 6 November – Second ODI at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad 8 November – Third ODI at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad

from Cricket news | Latest Cricket Updates | The Express Tribune https://ift.tt/KQ4vBrV